Filter Needed?

[patrickknives]

Below is one type of picture that I take in a lightbooth, the issue I have is wash out of the blade or other shiny surfaces due to reflection. With a single blade I can adjust the knife to prevent the reflection, but with several as shown it is really impossible, should I be working with the exposure and lighting to help this issue or should I be using a filter.

[peirceman]

I don't believe a polarizer will help with shiny metal surfaces, but it can't hurt. Give it a try and let us know. The polarizer will help saturate you colors more as it gets rid of saturation robbing glare.

Scott

[BobF]

A filter won't help. This all comes down to lighting. You need very flat, even light. You need to adjust your lighting to eliminate any hotspots or specular highlights and reflections. It's not unlike photographing someone wearing glasses.

I'd also suggest a couple other things. Check your white balance. These shots you've posted have a very warm/yellow hue. A more neutral colour balance would be better. Also, the background of the leaves isn't conducive to showing off the material in the handles of the knives. The colours and tones are too similar and the fine detail of the handles is lost.

[patrickknives]

Thanks for your help I really appreciate your comments, I use a light box with a diffuser but it seems to let in alot of glare, I will need to change the cover material to something else. I did trash the background I am using a plain colored background now. I am not sure on this one but I do manually set the white balance most of the time. This is a early shot with the camera so I may not have. I am going to reshoot this with a different background and post the setting, let me know what you think. Hopefully get time tonight. BYW if I do get the lighting right will a polerizer help with color saturation?

[BobF]

No need for a polarizer for that. Shoot RAW and adjust saturation to taste in editing. Are you using strobes on your lightbox? If so, then a polarizer is a non-starter. It will cause too much light loss for the flash to give you a proper exposure.

[patrickknives]

Here is a redo the the picture, I shot on a tripod with a 2 sec delay, 1/50 f5.6 iso 200. It seems like I have alot of light but must shoot at a slow speed and low f stop.

[Ivalo]

I quite like your re-do, Patrick. The color palette is quite intriguing, as is the lighting! What type of lens did you use? Someone already asked this, but I would like to know as well: did you use strobes with your lightbox? And why the 2 sec delay with the second shot?

Also, if I may ask--how did you get to be taking so many photos of knives?

[BobF]

This background is a bit better Patrick, but it still conflicts a bit with the front knife.

The bigger issue is the unevenness of the light. The result is that the upper right corner is much darker than the lower left and the detail of the handle of the top knife gets lost. The lighting is much better in the first in terms of consistency front to back.

For small product shots like this, it's common to use a small light cube. These are white on all sides, are typically lit from the outside with the material of the cube providing the diffusion and because all sides are white, the light just bounces around and creates a very even, flat illumination.

[patrickknives]

I am using a Sony A57 with a Tameron 18-200 zoom. I make, collect and sell knives, so I need to make photos. I had another camera that did fine but I needed some pictures to submit to a publication. These were so much better than mine I decided to step up and get some better equipment and work on getting some good pics/\.

I have some different backgrounds but you are right until I solve the uneven lighting issue it probably is a mute point. I am using fixed spot lights, I am not sure what the bulbs are but they are for photography. I am going to reverse all the lights and use reflectors, the diffusion on my lightbox just lets too much direct light through. I will reshoot once I get the reflectors set up for the lights.

thanks for the comments and help, I will also post some of the knives I have made. Any suggestion on a better lense for this I probably should make the investment.

BTY the 2 sec delay is to insure I am not shaking the camera.